Hi All,
I am a beginner snowboarder. I weight 163 lbs and everytime I went to the rentals they gave me a 153 ltr burton board to play with. I have had fun with that board. Since I would like to own a board I started researching and it seems that "burton board finder" recommended 150 board size. Next time I went to the rental I demanded the 150 sized board. I have had some trouble keeping the board in control as compared to 153..I cannot put my finger on it but it did feel weird..I wont say that I could not turn but I caught edge more often while I havent so far with 153.

Is it just my mind playing tricks or should I really go back to 153 ? Does 3 points on the board length matter so much or is it just my skill..I would wager the former but just wanted your opinions.

Actually, their not points, their centimeters. It's the length of the board.

The proper length is determined by your weight as well as your riding style. What I would suggest is start by doing a online search for snowboard length calculators. Go talk to a few shops, fellow riders as well as instructors and see what they suggest. From there determine what style of riding you want to progress to. If you want to get into riding the park, stereotypically you'll want to run a shorter board, commonly called a freestyle board. Their usually easier to spin, etc.

If you just want to do all mountain, then an All mountain board may be your choice. the added length helps in stability at higher speed, but still short enough to play in the park if you should so choose. As a beginner, I'd lean to this type of board. Their usually more of a do-it-all type of board.

With rentals there is no telling what sort of stance they gave you and they usually don't make any adjustment to it unless you ask, it's possible that either the angles were way different, or the stance itself was narrower; either one of those (or both!) could contribute to some trouble for a beginner.

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With rentals there is no telling what sort of stance they gave you and they usually don't make any adjustment to it unless you ask, it's possible that either the angles were way different, or the stance itself was narrower; either one of those (or both!) could contribute to some trouble for a beginner.

Exactly what I thought. Since you got a shorter board your stance was probably more narrow and that will have a huge effect on how you ride. In general, beginners will want to be on softer boards that are a little shorter then they will ride once they have the basics down. All rental boards should be soft. Just make sure you are getting the same stance width and angles every time you go.

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thx for the all info. I usually adjust the stance angle myself and I find 12,12 ( or is +12,-12 terminology)working good for me. I think the point about narrower stance could be the issue. The place I rent the boards from, has boards that range in board lengths..so I guess they just have a common stance width but I could be wrong. The type of board seems to be the same across board length. So it seems the stance width could be an issue..although I thought I was comfortable with the width when I stood on it. Anyways last weekend I went back and tried 153 again. That board works like a charm...so I am good for now.

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